Past and Present
by Dale Luck
Summary: See into the pasts of the characters, the events leading up to the game, and the events during and after it.
1. PROLOGUE Part 1

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**PROLOGUE**

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**PART 1 - THE SCATTERING OF DARWIN**

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Dormin panted for breath as he ran as fast as he could from the screams of the church. He didn't know exactly what happened - one minute he was standing over the body of his grandmother in her coffin, thinking of the times she had took care of him, and then she was awake, sitting up in her coffin and screaming her head off like a banshee.

It had happened once before with a rat in the street, but he thought it was just hurt and didn't think of it anymore. It was laying down, seemingly lifeless, and when Dormin looked at it, it started to move again.

It was an odd gift, one he wished he didn't have. Only the Gods should have the power to bring the dead back to life.

"Get the boy!" he heard a shout come from the street he had just left, "Burn the devil inside!"

"I've got him!" came another cry from somewhere a few steps away from him.

Before he could have time to react, Dormin was tackled down to the ground by a man far older than he was. He hit his head hard on the floor and his sight turned to a tint of red as blood flowed into his eyes.

His arms were held behind his back and his hands were wrapped together with what felt like thick rope. He closed his eyes in pain and before he knew it was being dragged back to where he had just came from.

Within minutes he felt himself being pushed into what felt like a cave, and hitting into a stone altar of sorts (too smooth to be plain stone).

"We can't kill him, Emon," he heard a woman whisper, "The Gods would not approve of it!"

"We're not going to kill it," someone replied, but talking at a normal volume rather than whispering, "We're going to split it's soul across the Forbidden Land."

"But a soul, no matter how much is it's split apart, needs some sort of host to contain it - you cant just simply contain it within the land."

"Ah, but that's exactly what is going to happen. I'm sure you've heard of the Colossus at least once in your lives, right?"

"You can't be serious!" the woman screamed, making Dormin flinch in shock, "You know what would happen if they were to be reawakended - that is, if they are real."

"Well, do you suggest anything else? By killing it, it would haunt our villages and never leave, and by not destroying it in someway you never know what horrors could befall our people because of this ability. Nothing should have the power to bring back the fallen - nothing!"

Everything went silent. Dormin thought that at any moment he would awake from this as if it were some horrendous nightmare. Of course, Dormin hadn't the best luck, and as he feared the waking nightmare continued.

A small, inaudible murmuring surrounded him as various people (his eyes being still closed, he couldn't see exactly who) started chanting in rhythm. He began to cry.

That day he had to say goodbye to the last living family member he had left - and now to his own life. The Gods were looking down on him - and striking him with their heaviest hammers.

Within minutes a pain began to grow in his stomach - at first he thought it due to hunger, but after time light leaked through his eyelids and he realised the pain was starting to feel like something was ripping out of him and through every square inch of his skin.

He screamed in pain, and then realised something was attempting to get out of his mouth. He tried shutting it, but it wouldn't close. He tried to stop screaming, but instead he screamed louder.

He felt his soul break into pieces.


	2. PROLOGUE Part 2

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**PROLOGUE**

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**PART 1 - THE CURSE OF MONO**

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Mono sat with her mother in the isles of the church, as she returned from paying her respects to the passed away lady at the front of the room. People passed by and looked at her in scorn, except for one person - Wander.

She had always liked Wander a lot, but she was never allowed to visit him for fear of being assaulted by the various villagers. At a young age, the village prophet had stated that Mono's future would be "surrounded by a land of only death - the shadow of the colossus overlooking her."

Of course, the villagers hadn't taken this lightly - everyone knew the legend of the forbidden land and the Colossi that once inhabited it. They had always always whispered about her having a "cursed future" and going to cause the "destruction of the village".

She, personally, didn't believe it, and neither did her parents - at least, she hoped not. They looked rather wary a lot of the time, though Mono was never sure whether it was because they believed in the prophecy - or if they believed they'd be stoned for housing a heretic.

She looked over to Wander at the other side of the room, wondering what he was thinking about. A moment later, he looked back and smiled to her, making her giggle lightly. Of course, the person sitting in front of her turned around and looked disgustingly at her.

"Don't take notice of her," Mono's mother said, holding her closer.

A scream emitted from the front of the room and the heads of everyone snapped upwards to see the commotion. The coffin at the front tipped over as a man fell unconcious and a figure of shadow started coming forward from where the corpse was.

The light from the church windowpane seemed to become brighter and it shone down upon the creature, making it disappear as if it wasn't ever there.

"YOU!" screamed the person in front of her, "This is your fault, you and your damn curse!"

"What?" Mono replied, shocked at the accusation, "I haven't done anything! I've-"

Before she could say anything more in her defence, the woman dived over the table and began to strangle her, screaming. Moments later, however, she was keeled over on the floor as Mono's mother kicked her in her side side.

Mono smoothed her hands over her neck to check for any damage, as she gasped for breath. She looked around and saw that a riot had broken out across the room, destroying any atmosphere that would be appropriate for a funeral of a teacher.

"Mono, over here!" came the cry of Wander by the church doors. She looked over to see him waving her over to him.

She dashed through the crowds and over to Wander, where he grabbed her arm and pulled her out to safety out of the church. He slammed the door shut and she looked at him, understanding now more than ever why she loved him.

He turned to look at her and they both laughed.


	3. PROLOGUE Part 3

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**PROLOGUE**

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**PART 3 - THE LOVE OF WANDER**

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As they stood there laughing, Wander couldn't help but thinking that moments like this would've been much more frequent if it weren't for that damned prophet all those years ago. He had first met Wander when she had ran away from home, and she had passed outside of where he lived.

Thank god she didn't die.

She had gone days without food, as no one would let her buy any or give any to her for free, due to her supposed "cursed destiny". Wander didn't care if she was cursed or not, all he knew was that she was one of the most caring people he had ever known.

The doors shook hard as something slammed into them from inside the church, and Wander took this opportunity to take Mono to the safety of his... home. By home though, he meant a small enclosed area between the houses that no one but him and his friends knew how to get to.

Wander had no parents of his own, having been found on the steps to the church while a young child. Surprisingly however, he grew up not believing in what the priests and priestesses were teaching him, finding their methods somewhat unneeded and violent for his own beliefs.

Once going in between some houses, Wander led Mono up crates and over rooftops until they finally got to a small enclosed area created by the walls of houses, where they dropped into to the safety of a mattress, small fire and storage of food.

"Wow, you did this?" Mono finally spoke, holding Wander's arm cozily.

"Yeah," he replied, smiling at the warmth given off by her arm, "It took me a while to save up for the mattress, but in the end I got enough. It was either that or hard floor."

"But," Mono asked, confused at Wander's choice of home, "You've been invited to homes all over the village, even invited into the church itself - why do you choose to live here?"

"Well," he said, lowly, "It's not that I prefer this place, it's just that the only reason they want me to live with them is that they think I'm 'blessed' or something, just because of where I was found. I'd rather be appreciated for stuff that I've actually _accomplished_, you know?"

Before Mono could reply however, a roofslate from the building next to them broke off, making them jump back in fear, but it was too late however, as the slate fell onto Mono, smashing over her head and making her pass out cold.

"MONO!" Wander screamed, picking her up quickly and wincing at the blood pouring out of her forehead. He placed her down on his mattress and left to get help.

Returning to the area of the church, he screamed for help but no one was around to hear him.

"She's going to pass away," a voice came from behind Wander suddenly, making him turn ready to strike, "Put down your fists boy, I'm not here to hurt you."

"Lord Emon," he cried, "It's Mono, she's hurt badly and - what do you mean she's going to pass away?"

"The Gods intended for this to happen," he started to walk slowly towards him, "On the Colossi could help her now, but that's a fools errand for sure - only death awaits the man who steps into the Land of the Colossi. Death and banishment."

"I am afraid of neither," Wander said, determined to do anything to help Mono.

"I'm sure over time you'll think differently. For now, she'll pass on. It's for the best."

Before Emon could carry on with any of his rather pessimistic statements, Wander sped through the church and to the back, where a sword was held by a statue. As the legend went, this sword of stone from the church would turn into a sword of holy power upon entering the forbidden lands. Of course, this was never proven as no one ever dared leave the village for fear of the colossi that inhabited the world outside of it.

He pulled it swiftly from the statues arms and fled back out of the doors, holding the sword as best as he could despite it's weight - being made out of stone and longer than his arm, it was bound to be heavy.

"If you leave with that now," came Lord Emons voice from somewhere behind him, "You leave the grace of the church, and are no longer a blessed man."

Wander cared not about being blessed or being in the good graces of the church - all he cared about was Mono, whom it was time to save.

It was time to enter the forbidden land. Time to enter the Land of the Colossi.


	4. CHAPTER 1 Part 1

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**CHAPTER 1 - THE CURE**

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**PART 1 - THE SHRINE OF WORSHIP**

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The Shrine of Worship, that's what the legend used to call it. A small shrine within the center of the forbidden lands, safe from the colossi but not from the dark spirits that lived there. The legend also told of how within the Shrine the cure for death itself could be found.

Wander hoped this was true.

After getting his bow and wrapping the sword safely with rope on his belt, he had wrapped Mono within his warmest cloak and went to see his trusty old friend Agro. Agro was a horse owned by a drunken stablemaster, and when Wander had first found him he was on the brink of death.

After giving him food to eat and water to drink, Agro had taken a liking to Wander, and so Wander came back each day to take care of - God knows what would have happened if he didn't.

It was already night time by the time he had carried Mono to the stables, and once they were there Agro gave out a loud neigh of happiness.

"It's good to see you too boy," Wander smiled.

He opened the gate and went to the stable, where he released Agro and placed Mono on his back safely, before hopping up himself. The stablemaster seemed to have passed out behind the horses, and the riding equipment was still left on the horses.

Wander whispered into Agro's ears and away he went at top speed. People in various houses were woken by this sound and peered out of their windows to see what the commotion was all about, but by the time they'd got to their windows Wander was already at the stone bridge to the forbidden lands.

While riding across the bridge, Wander looked over the edge and saw in the distance a large moving creature. He couldn't quite see the details of what it looked like, but he knew exactly what it was - a colossus.

He concentrated ahead of him, trying to keep all fear out of his mind as he rode towards (hopefully) the shrine at the end of the bridge. Within minutes he arrived in a long room with a highceiling, and at the end of it could see stairs leadig up to an altar.

He rode Agro to thealtar, before hopping off and gently pulling down Mono. He placed her upon the altar and slowly pulled away the cloak, revealing the lifeless body of his love. If anything, she looked rather peaceful - though she didn't have that expression on her face before.

Before Wander could think over this however, a sound came from behind him, making him turn quickly. Several of the shadow creatures he had seen in the church were moving towards him. Acting on a whim, he pulled out the sword from his makeshift scabbard, and to his surprise it was no longer made of stone, nor as heavy as it used to be, but rather it was now of metal with intricate symbols covering it's blade.

He got ready in a battle stance, and waved his sword in front of him to see if they'd be frightened by it. But instead, something rather strange happened.

The light from the entrances behind the altar reflected off of the blade and into several strings of light, each hiing into the creatures and they instantly disappeared as if they were never there. Wander was shocked by this.

"You possess great power, child," came a voice that seemed to echo across the entire room and through his own mind, "Not only is that sword of yours extremely ancient - it's not your own."

"What of it?" Wander spoke into the air, looking around for the source of the voice (or voices, as it seemed to be both a male and a female speaking in unison).

"I am Dormin," said the voices, not acknowledging his question, "I was killed many centuries ago by your village because of something that I couldn't control - and now, the prophecy is being fulfilled."

"What prophecy?" Wander replied, no longer looking for the voice and checking on the condition of Mono's body.

"The prophecy that one day my soul would be free to rejoin it's brethren, of course."

"All I want is to bring Mono back to life - that's all I ask!"

"It's... possible."

"Then tell me how and I'll be on my way."

"By destroying the 16 idols that line these walls, but that can only be done by destroying the 16 colossi that inhabit this land."

Wander thought for a moment. Defeating the colossi was not only a fools errand, but it meant certain death for himself - no one had ever gone into the forbidden lands and survived before. But he had to do this - for Mono.

"I'll do it."

"Then go now - let your sword guide the way."

The voices stopped, and Wander knew what he had to do. He got onto Agro and rode out of the entrance - and into the forbidden lands.

And in the distance, the colossi sturred.


End file.
